Shelf structure



April 27, 1937. v o. M. OTTE 2,078,681

SHELF STRUCTURE Filed March 28, 1935 3 Shets-Sheet 1 April 27, 193?.

M. OTTE SHELF STRUCTURE Filed March 28, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 April 27, 1937. o. M. OTTE SHELF STRUCTURE Filed March 28, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR @560 721.0141

Patented Apr. 21, 1937 PATENT OFFlCE SHELF STRUCTURE Otho M.Otte, Tarentnm, Pa assignorto Aliegheny Steel Company, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application March 28, 1935, Serial No. 13,426

' 7 Claims.

This invention relates to shelf structures and particularly "to shelf structures for refrigerators and the like. In certain of its aspects this invention has to do with improvements in both stationary and sliding shelf structures and in other of its aspects to improvements in sliding shelf structures.

Inv the last few years, numerous attempts have been made to make use of various types of stainless steel and/or rustless iron in the manufacture of compartment shelving but so far as I am aware, such attempts have not produced commercially successful products. This is due, at least in a large measure, to the excessive cost of such materials.

In the manufacture of sliding shelf structures as commercially produced and marketed for the last few years, iron wire rod of suitable size has been used. After the shelf structures are completed, they are plated, either galvanized, tinned or cadmium plated.

The different platings or coatings that have been utilized in commercial products have not been satisfactory for sliding shelf structures, par- I ticularly for refrigerators where an atmosphere conducive to rusting is present. The coatings or platings on the interengaging parts during the sliding operation wear away and expose the iron surface which generally rusts quite rapidly, and the platings come off as scale or powder thus contaminating foodstuffs, etc.

This situation has not only been embarrassing to the manufacturers of refrigerators who employed these plated sliding shelf structures but has involved them in considerable expense on account of replacements.

An object of this invention is to produce a shelf. structure especially suited for refrigerators and the like which is low enough in cost to enable it to be used commercially and yet has its coatled or sheathed parts made from stainless stee.

Another object of this invention is to produce a sliding shell structure which meets the service requirements for refrigerators; which is cheap to manufacture and in which the shelf proper is made from a stainless or rustless steel or iron.

A still furtherobject is to produce a relatively cheap and strong sliding shelf structure for compartments such as refrigerators and the like in which the metal to metal parts which contact during sliding operations are made from a stainless or rustless steel or iron.

Another object is to produce a sliding shelf 55 structure in which the shelf proper is formed as a tray which is removaltlerwhile its supporting members are still in operative position for use.

A still further object of this invention is to produce a shelf structure especially adapted for refrigerators that has all its parts which are liable to be contacted by fruit or food acids free from corroding conditions in general and made from a stainless steel, with its other portions, those which give the structure the necessary strength and rigidity, made from iron wire rod of sufilcient size to give such necessary strength and rigidity.

A still further object of this invention is to produce a sliding shelf structure especially adapted for refrigerators that has most of the advantages of such a structure made entirely from stainless steel but capable of being made and sold at a relatively low price as compared to a complete stainless steel structure.

I have illustrated certain embodiments of my 0 invention in the accompanying drawings wherein:-

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the lower portion of a refrigerator or the like provided with one form of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled frames of Fig. 1 without the shelf or tray member;

Fig. 2a is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of one end of the movable frame;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the fixed or subframe; 1

Fig. 3a is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of. one end of the sub-frame of Fig. 3;

Fig. i is a section taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 2 but with one form of shelf or tray member in position;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a modified form of fixed frame which is used without a movable frame;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one form of shelf or tray which may be used in connection with the frame of Fig. 5;

Fig. l is a fragmentary perspective view, similar to Fig. 2, of a modified construction;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary View partly in section and partly in elevation taken on the line VIII- VIII of Fi '7;

Fig. 9 is an elevational view partly in section taken on the line IXIX of Fig. 7 and showing 51) a shelf or tray in position;

Fig. 10 illustrates in perspective a shelf or tray having an expanded metal flooring or bottom;

Fig. 11 illustrates in perspective a corner portion of a shelf or tray and a cooperating frame,

but having a bottom composed of parallel wire.

rods instead of expanded metal and having portions broken away to show how the ends of the material forming the shelf or tray are joined;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary sectional view of the form of tray and associated movable frame of Fig. 9;

Fig. 13 is another modified form of the structure of Fig. 12; and

Fig. 14 is a sectional view partly in elevation taken on line mv-Xrv of Fig. 2.

I Similar numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the various views.

Ever since the advent of sliding shelves for relli frigerators the manufacturers of such shelves have been trying to find a way to make commercially practicable 'structures from one of the stainless steels which are being widely used. Various proposed designs have all failed to meet 2% requirements for various reasons.

A refrigerator shelf structure has to be strong enough to support a considerable weight or load and the shelf member accordingly has to be of considerable strength and weight and such has caused a too expensive construction to be resorted to in proposed designs. With sliding shelf structures, a sliding shelf which is able to support fairly heavy-loads when the shelf is extended means that the weights of theparts of even a simple structure are necessarily considerable. If stainless steel is used in making up these parts, the cost becomes disproportionate and thus such material cannot'be utilized for commercial structures. i As shown in Fig. l, the numeral lb designates the lower portlon'of a refrigerator or the like of which the inner wall is designated by the numeral El. This inner wall it is provided with a plurality of projections or protuberances i2 which e 9 may be formed, for example, by striking up or pressing the same from the wall. .These projec tions are so formed and spaced, as will be under- 'stood from Fig. 3 especially, that airame can be held firmly but removably in place in the refrigdd erator by them. This frame is designated as a whole by the numeral i3 and is termed a fixed or sub-frame.

As will be understood from the manner in which the sub-frame is mounted it will be apiib parent that this sub-frame i3 is fixed but removable when required. The sub-frame 93 consists of three main parts: one part is a transverse,

horizontal rod it extending across the rear of the refrigerator and having its ends it bent for- 55 wardly at right angles to follow the side walls Near the ends of this rod 7 60 are spot welded, brazed, soldered, 'or otherwise suitably secured to rod 53. From their rearward ends the side rods extend vertically upwardly as at l? for a short distance and then horizontally angularly inwardly as at it for a short distance 65 and then forwardly and horizontally. 'Near its forward and each such rod i6 is provided with a horizontal inward U or bend it. Each such rod terminates in portions 26, 2i, 22 that extend, respectively, vertically downwardly, then horizon- 70 tally outwardly and then horizontally rearwardly, following the side walls'of the refrigerator. The end portions i5, 22 thus formed rest upon projections It in the inner side walls of the refrigerator and the transverse rod is fits under similar 75. but inverted projections It in the rear wall.

As will also be observed the side rods it are provided on their surface with a sheath or partial coating 23 of stainless steel, e. g., chrome nickel steel. 'This sheath need not be co-extensive with the entire length-of the side rods but preferably 5 extends far enough therealong to notes a wearing or bearing surface as will be hereinafter more clearly understood; not need the sheath extend entirely around the side rod but it need merely cover a sufiiclent proportion of the circerence 1o ofthe side rod to protect the metal thereof from being in direct contact with the slidable or movable frame hereinafter to be described. The sheathing may be secured in place in any suitable manner, e. g., by spot welding. Adjacent the i5 forward end of each side rod at the portion provided with the U it a vertical plate 26 which is madeof stainless steel is spot welded as atas to the rod it and which, bridge-like, straddles a horizontal plate 25 of the same material spot 20 welded or otherwise suitably secured as at it to the horizontal U it of the rod it. The function and significance of these parts will be understood box-like clip made of stainless steel and secured to the U and rpd as by. spot-welding, etc as 35 designated at 36. As will be clearest from Fig. 2a, this box-like clip consists ofa vertical portion at with a portion. or flange 32 extending horizontally outwardly from its lower edge and with a similar portion or flange 33 of less length extending horido zontally outwardly from its upper edge, but the ends of the upper edge are bent horizontally inwardly to form securing vflanges 3% which are spot-welded as at 88, to the side rod of frame 28. In addition, the side rods are provided with stalnless steel sheaths or bearing surfaces 85a on their undersides from a point near the clips to a point near the front thereof. In Fig. 2, as in Fig. 4, the sub-frame and the movable frame are shown assembled and it is apparent that the movable frame slides forwardly and rearwardly on the sub-frame and that all contacting surfaces are stainless steel surfaces so that there is no metal to metal contact of the bare rod material itself which is usually galvanized or plated, but all bearing or contacting surfaces are of stainless steel which has numerous advantages among which .may be mentioned; smoother and more silent operation; minimum of chattering and vibration; non-corrodibility and longer emcient operation. When the clips on 'frame 28 meet plates 2% on frame it, such elements act as stops to limit forward movement of frame 28 and to prevent frame 28 from tilting. v

' Referring to Fig. '7, a modified arrangement is shown which in certain respects is simpler and easier to make and of decreased cost. In this. form of the invention the sub-frame its is provided with the same transverse rod Ida as before but the side rods lSa are differently constructed. Each such side rod is suitably united to the transverse rod lea at its rearward end 81a and from that point extends vertically downwardly then angularly horizontally inwardly as at 58c and then forwardly-and horizontally to a point near its forward end where it is provided with the compound curvature as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. This curvature is such that a portion thereof passes directly beneath the movable side rod of frame 28a and an end 220. is provided whichrests upon a projection l2 as in Fig. 3. Each such sub-frame side rod Ilia is provided with a sheath of stainless steel 23:: of such length and circumferential extent as to protect the metal of the side rod from being directly contacted with. Where side rod H50. passes beneath the side rod of frame 28 a ring or band of stainless steel 23b is provided. Movable frame 28d, as will be apparent from Fig. '7, is provided with a rear transverse rod, the ends of which are bent around approximately to form a semi-circular end 2% as will be seen in Fig. 8 and the inner surface thereof is provided with a protective liner 290 of stainless steel. Each side rod of the movable frame is provided on the lower part of its circumference with a sheath or strip 35:; of stainless steel which is spot welded or otherwise suitably secured in place. It will thus be apparent that all sliding contacting surfaces are of stainless steel and there is no contact between the bare metal of the frames or rmzls themselves.

In Fig. 9, a fragmentary portion of the construction of Fig. '7 is shown provided with a tray of the type indicated by Fig. 12. In this case, the floor or bottom 36 of the shelf or tray 31 is formed of slats or bars and is not depressed and there is a channel 38 formed near the outer edge of the shelf of the tray. The edge of the shelf or tray follows the curvature of the side rods of the movable frame for a portion of its circumference, as shown in Figs. 9 and 12; being thus supported by or hung from such frame. 'While the shelf or tray indicated in'Flg. 12 has no handles or guard rails, that of Fig. 9 indicates such elements by the numerals 3%, ii]. The tray, however, may also be formed in the manner of Fig. 13 wherein the bottom or flooring 36a, of the shelf or tray 37a is somewhat depressed and the edge of the tray is semi-circular resting upon the side rods of the movable frame.

Any of these traysmay have a bottom or flooring M which may consist of expanded metal such as is shown in Fig. 10, and which may be made as described in my copending application Ser. No. 728,060, filed May 29, 1934;- (Patent No. 2,018,085), or which may be provided in'a more conventional manner with a plurality of parallel rods 82 such as is indicated in Figs. l, 6, and 11. Referring to Figs. 10 and 11 it will be noted that the edge of the shelf or tray is provided with a rolled edge or a semi-circular flange 63 which receives the side rods of the movable frame, where such is used or a stationary frame as per Fig. 5. The strip-like side and edge walls M, d5 of the shelf or. tray of Figs. 10 and 11, for example, may be suitably made by shaping or .bending a strip or sheet of material to desired configuration. In this case, as will be seen especially in Figs. Iii and 11, the abuttingedges ii of the material are secured by means of the irregular fastening piece d&, which extends over the outside of the abutting edges and is spot welded at 38 adjacent each such edge and a portion of which d9 follows the curvature of the flange 53 and is spot welded thereto at suitable points such as those designated by the numeral 5B and it will be noted in Fig. 11 that this latter portion occupies a position within the space formed by the U or bend 5! in the side rods of the frame and-thus such U; or bend has the addiscribed, is fixed but removable tional function of providing the necessary space for this connection, its main function being to act as a, stop.

In Figs. 5 and 6, I have illustrated a non-sliding shelf or tray wherein the fixed frame 52 is formed of wire rod of suitable composition in the shape of a rectangle or other required configuration depending upon the particular use thereof. The side portions 53 thereof are each provided with a U or bend 54 which may' be more or less centrally disposed as shown but which in other instances may be nearer the front or rear portions 5d of the frame. Near the ends thereof, preferably, side portions 53 are each provided with a pair of lugs 55 of approximately Z-shape, as shown. Each lug 55 has a portion 55a spot welded or otherwise suitably secured to side portions 53. A more or less vertical or inclined portion 5% connects portions 556 to end portions 550. This frame 52 is suitably mounted in the refrigerator or other compartment which is provided with any required support means such as projections 62. The shelf or tray of Fig. 6 is adapted to be removably mounted on frame 52 and may have suitable handles 46a. The tray shown in Fig. 6 has two joints such as that shown in Fig. 11 and are designated as a whole by the numerals 56. Such a tray is accordingly made of two stampings or the like which are duplicates. The tray, numbered 51, may have a flooring or bottom of parallel rods M or may have an expanded metal bottom as indicated at Bl in Fig. 10, or may be made of bars or slats 36 as in Figs. 9 and 12. All the trays are made of stainless steel, preferably and where a slidable frame is utilized such frame and the tray operate as a unit.

It is apparent that structures in accordance with the foregoing description enable the objects and advantages heretofore related to be accomplished simply and inexpensively. Either of the structures described may be utilized for refrigerator shelving or such structures may be used in any other compartment where trays or shelves of the types described find useful application. It is further apparent that, where a sliding shelf is concerned, the slidable frame moves forward and back upon the sub-frame which, as. already dein the compartment. The slidable frame cannot he accidentally over-withdrawn due to the fact that the Us or bends and/or the plates or clips described act as limiting stops. Likewise, the movable frame when in extended or forward position does not tilt and this is primarily because of the cooperation of the parts described. as will be understood. From an examination of Fig. 2, for example, it is apparent that nowhere do the wire rod materials of the frames contact with each other, but all contacting surfaces are of stainless steel or rustlessiron as above pointed. out. Such a construction, therefore, reduces wear, noise and chattering to a minimum and gives a structure which has the advantages of a full stainless steel structure without the concomitant disadvantages as pointed out above and which disadvantages prevented adoption and use of proposed structure.

In connection with the tray or sheif mem" bers shown and described, the use of guard rails and/or handles is optional but is guided by the following desiderata. Trays or shelves the fiooring or bottom of which is not depressed as in Figs. 9 and 12, are preferably provided with both guard rails and handles or with guard rails so positioned and constructed that they may act also as handles. Trays or shelves the flooring or bottom of which is depressed, as in Figs. 1, 4, 6, 10, 11,

and 13, are preferably provided with handles but not with guard rails. The reason for this is chiefly that the side walls of the shelves or trays themselves act as'guards preventing undue or undesired movement of articles on the shelves or trays and, of course, preventing articles from falling or sliding off. With respect to handles Ma (Fig. 6), these straddle joints 56 and, being spot welded or the like to the tray, additionally serve to reinforce such joints on the inside.

The description of the invention is intended in an illustrative rather than in a limitative sense and it is clear that suitable modifications, variations, substitutions and omissions can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is rather to be defined by the subjoined claims. 'The structures can be adapted to accommodate them to any given compartment and such changes as are necessary therefor are intended to be within the limits of the present invention.

What I claim as new and Letters Patent is:

1. In a shelf structure of thekind described, a sub-frame removably supportable in a compartdesire to secure by ment, a slidable frame movable forward and back on the sub-frame, said sub frame' consisting of a transverse rod and two side rods respectively .parallelingthe rear and side walls of the compartment, said side rods being each provided with a stainless steel sheathing and having a U intermediate its ends whereat there is a vertical 'and a horizontal plate of stainless steel suitably secured in place.

2. In a shelf structure of the kind described, a relatively fixed sub-frame, a frame slidable forward and back on said sub-frame, said sub-frame 'consisting of a rectangle of wire rod, the sides of which are provided with intermediate Us at which are secured box-like clips of stainless steel and the undersurfaces of which sides are provided with bearing surfaces of stainless steel.

3. Compartment shelving consisting of a subframe, a frame slidable on the sub-frame and a ,tray mounted on said slidable frame, said subframe and slidable frame being provided with stainless steel parts where the frames contact with each other thus preventing direct contact between the materials of the frames themselves and said tray'or shelf being itself composed of stainless'steel and being movable as a unit with tray mounted on said slidable frame, said subframe and slidable frame being provided with stainless steel parts where the frames contact with each other thus preventing direct contact between the materials of the frames themselves and said tray orshelf being itself composed of stainless steel and being movable as a unit with said slidable frame, the stainless steel parts on the sub-frame consisting of side rod sheaths and pairs of plates and the stainless steel parts on said slidable frame consisting of sheaths on the undersurfaces of the side rods thereof and boxlike clips-attached to the side rods near the rear end thereof.

5. In a structure of the character described comprising a tray supporting frame and a stainless steel tray supported by said frame, said tray being fabricated from a suitable blank of stainless steel and the ends of which are united in abutment by a suitable fastening piece extending across the abutting edges, said frame being provided with a.U-shaped vertical bend which forms a space directly thereabove and said tray having a semi-circular flange overlying said frame and the abutting edges of which are secured together by an extension of said fastening piece, which said extension lies in the space aforesaid.

6. Compartment shelving consisting of a subframe, a frame slidable on the sub-frame and a tray mounted on said slidable frame, said subframe having a pair of side rods each of which has a stainless steel strip secured to its upper surface, said slidable frame having a pair of side rods each of which has a stainless steel strip secured to its lower surface, the stainless steel strips being so disposed as to-constitute bearing surfaces and prevent contact between the frames themselves, and means including stainless steel parts to prevent overwithdrawal of said sliding frame, said means including angularly disposed stainless steel plates.

7. Compartment shelving consisting of a sub-,

frame, a frame slidable on the sub-frame and a tray mounted on said slidable frame, said subframe having a pair of side rods each of which has a stainless steel strip secured to its upper surface, said slidable frame having a pair of side rods each of which has a stainless steel strip se- 

